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Long Beach, CA – On Saturday, September 10th, Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn and the Long Beach Police Department will hold a gun-buyback event from 8AM to 4PM at Ramona Park, 3301 E. 65th St. in North Long Beach. The event gives residents an opportunity to turn guns in, no questions asked, in exchange for gift cards. The firearms are destroyed, eliminating a significant threat to the area.

“This is an opportunity to turn in firearms, anonymously, with no questions asked,” said Supervisor Hahn. “Fewer guns mean safer neighborhoods. Our Long Beach Police Department partners and I look forward to welcoming community members who are ready to help make their communities safer places to live.”

In May, Supervisor Hahn sponsored a similar event in neighboring Lynwood that took 365 guns off the streets. Next month’s event is the product of collaboration between the office of Supervisor Hahn, which purchased the gift cards, and the Long Beach Police Department, which will be responsible for accepting and destroying the firearms.

“As part of our priority to reduce violent crime, I am pleased to announce that the Long Beach Police Department will be partnering with Supervisor Janice Hahn on this upcoming Gun Buy-Back operation”, said LBPD Chief Wally Hebeish. “The Gun Buy Back operation will provide a safe environment for individuals to turn in firearms and contribute to improving public safety in our community.”

As with the Lynwood event, there are important guidelines to participating in the buy-back that ensure the safety of the public and LBPD officers. Firearms must be brought unloaded in the trunk of a vehicle and are not permitted on any Metro or Long Beach Transit vehicle. Pedestrian walk-ups will not be accepted. Participants can choose from an assortment of gift cards, including gift cards that can be redeemed on Amazon.

Non-functioning firearms: $50 in gift cards
Functioning Handguns/Rifles/Shotguns: $100 in gift cards
Functioning Assault Weapons: $200 in gift cards

b LA County Supervisor Janice Hahn has named public health expert and Long Beach resident Jennifer Ponce, MPH, to serve on the County’s Community Prevention and Population Health Task Force.

“There has never been a more important time for us as a County to focus on our approach to health equity for all of our residents,” said Supervisor Hahn. “Our Community Prevention and Population Health Task Force is key to helping us workshop that approach – and with more than two decades of experience addressing health disparities and serving underserved communities here in LA County, I couldn’t think of anyone that would be a better asset to this Task Force than Jennifer Ponce. I am proud to appoint her today.”

Ponce currently serves as the Chief Health Education and Promotion Officer at TCC Family Health, a health care agency known as a leader in the Long Beach area for providing top-notch care to underserved individuals and families. Prior to that, she served as their Director of Special Projects. During her time at TCC, she established the Health Education and Outreach Department, which oversees TCC’s development of health education materials, education classes, and health coverage outreach and enrollment efforts. She is also an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Public Health at Cal State University Fullerton, where she teaches Promoting Health in Diverse Populations and Community Health Education.

“Please accept my sincere appreciation for this appointment to serve on the County of Los Angeles Community Prevention and Population Health Task Force,” said Ponce. “In partnership with community and task force members, I will work diligently towards contributing to the movement towards systems and policy change that builds an environment in which everyone can reach their full health and wellness potential.”

The Los Angeles County Community Prevention & Population Health Task Force is a 21-member body dedicated to improving health equity in LA County. It counsels the Department of Public Health on critical policy decisions ranging from improving access to local parks to implementing public health protections for communities living near oil drilling sites. It also serves as an advisory body to the Department of Public Health’s Center for Health Equity. Members are appointed for two-year terms either through selection by the Board of Supervisors or by a nominating committee. The fourth cohort of the Task Force began their term in June 2022, representing a wide array of experience and expertise. Ponce is its newest member.

Downey, CA – This morning, LA County Supervisor Janice Hahn offered remarks and cut the ribbon on the Rancho Los Amigos Sports Complex, a new $12.5 million sports field complex in southwest Downey brought about through a collaboration between Supervisor Hahn’s office and the City of Downey. Downey Mayor Blanca Pacheco, Downey City Councilmembers, and Director of the LA County Department of Public Works Mark Pestrella joined Supervisor Hahn. American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) teams from across Downey were also in attendance for the event.

“Together, we have turned an empty lot into something great that the community can actually use and enjoy,” said Supervisor Hahn. “For decades to come, this new sports complex is going to be such a special place for kids, parents, friends, and teammates to play and enjoy time together.”

The Sports Complex includes three multi-use, lighted sports fields of varying sizes and a 3,000 sq. ft. support building with offices, restrooms, storage, and concession stand. The sports fields will consist of a football/soccer sized, an AYSO 12 sized, and an AYSO 8 sized. The sports fields are of synthetic turf that allows for greater usage than natural grass and requires minimal maintenance with low irrigation requirements.

Rancho Los Amigos Sports Center in Downey. Photo by Steven Georges/LACBOS

“This complex is going to be a great new resource for the residents of this neighborhood and of our entire city, and was made possible by our great partnership with Supervisor Hahn and the County’s Department of Public Works,” said Downey Mayor Blanca Pacheco. “I look forward to welcoming Downey’s families here.”

Supervisor Hahn’s office contributed $10 million to the project, with the City of Downey contributing the remaining $2.5 million. The construction was managed by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works. The City of Downey will lease the site—which occupies five acres of a previously unused portion of the Rancho Los Amigos South Campus—from the County for one dollar per year and assume its operating costs.

Vernon, CA—Today, Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn released the following statement after learning that the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) has issued an order of abatement against Sterigenics, a medical equipment sterilization facility in Vernon which is emitting elevated levels of ethylene oxide, a known carcinogen:

“Finally, we have some action from the SCAQMD on the ongoing health threat posed by the Sterigenics plant in Vernon,” said Supervisor Janice Hahn. “This is a step in the right direction, but I know the abatement process can be long so shutting down this facility until they can lower their emissions and come into compliance would be safer for the workers and residents alike.”

Hahn has previously called for the SCAQMD to temporarily shut down the facility until they can lower their ethylene oxide emissions and no longer pose a threat to the health of their workers and workers at nearby facilities.

Los Angeles, CA — Today, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a motion from Chair Holly J. Mitchell and co-authored by Supervisor Janice Hahn that returns Bruce’s Beach to the great-grandsons of Charles and Willa Bruce. Marking the first time in the history of Los Angeles County that land will be returned to Black descendants whose ancestors were robbed of their property and generational wealth due to unjust laws and practices rooted in systemic racism.

“It is never too late to right a wrong. Bruce’s Beach was taken nearly a century ago, but it was an injustice inflicted upon not just Willa and Charles Bruce but generations of their descendants who would, almost certainly, be millionaires today if they had been allowed to keep their beachfront property” said Supervisor Janice Hahn, representing the fourth district. “By returning this land to their great grandsons, the Bruce family will finally have the opportunity to start rebuilding the generational wealth that was denied them for decades. This will be the first land transfer of its kind, but it cannot be the last. I hope we set a precedent that governments across this nation will follow.”

“Bruce’s Beach has always been so much more than a scenic location to enjoy the California coast. It was a refuge for Black families who came from across the state when racist laws wouldn’t allow for any other safe beach going options. It holds the memories of countless Black families, the deep pain of multi-generational loss, and the hope that comes from facing the heinous acts of our past and having the courage to do what is right today” said Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Chair Holly J. Mitchell, representing the second district. “I am deeply honored to stand with the Board in completing this unprecedented return of land to the descendants of Charles and Willa Bruce. Manhattan Beach which was previously part of the fourth district and is now in the second district, has a new chapter in our shared history that exemplifies how we can begin to meaningfully address long-standing injustices in this County and nation.”

The transfer agreement is the culmination of years of advocacy and has taken several steps to set the County on the path to legally return the land. Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn, alongside Supervisor Mitchell, originally announced her intention to return the Bruce’s Beach property to the living descendants of Willa and Charles Bruce in April 2021. However, at that time the County was unable to transfer the property due to limitations placed on the land by the State. Supervisor Hahn reached out to State Senator Steve Bradford who authored SB 796, which codified into law the County’s ability to transfer the piece of public property back to private ownership.

The land being returned to the legal heirs of the Bruce family are lots 8 and 9 of Peck’s Manhattan Beach Tract, an estimated 7,000 sq ft that has been appraised at a value of $21 million. These lots are currently being used by LA County Fire Department as a lifeguard training facility. The motion authorizes the County to lease the property its lifeguard training facility is located on from the Bruce Family, LLC annually for $413,000.

The Bruce’s family operated a thriving resort, welcoming to Black patrons when legal segregation kept Black families from accessing California public beaches up until 1929 when the City of Manhattan Beach condemned the property. Through government actions, the Bruce’s family lost their land, business, their home and generational wealth. This is a historic moment for the County in its process of addressing current and historic prejudice under its Anti-Racism, Diversity, and Inclusion initiative.

“This is a day we weren’t sure would ever come, the return of our family’s property happened thanks to the hard work of many, many people. It means the world to us, and we know how important this is to people across the country. But it is also bittersweet. My great-great-grandparents, Willa and Charles Bruce sacrificed to open a business that gave Black people a place to gather and socialize, and Manhattan Beach took it from them because of the color of their skin” said Anthony Bruce, spokesman for the family. “It destroyed them financially. It destroyed their chance at the American Dream. I wish they could see what has happened today. We hope this opens people’s eyes to a part of American history that isn’t talked about enough, and we think it’s a step toward trying to right the wrongs of the past.”

“I am extremely proud to have authored Senate Bill 796 that allowed the County of LA to transfer the Bruce’s Beach land back to its rightful heirs, the great-grandsons of Charles and Willa Bruce. I commend Supervisors Janice Hahn and Holly Mitchell’s leadership in standing up to address racial injustice and having the courage to right historical wrongdoing,” said State Senator Steven Bradford. “The County’s plan will accomplish my legislation’s objective of rectifying the historic injustice that was done to the Bruce family. This will allow the Bruce family to realize the generational wealth which they have been deprived for generations, simply for being Black in America! We cannot change the injustices done to our people in the past, but we owe it to the future generations to eliminate structural and systemic racism that still exist today.”

To read the full motion, click here.